Belfast City Council has launched an investigation after Northern Ireland fans were forced to trudge through floodwater after the team's 4-0 win against Azerbaijan at Windsor Park.

Complaints about significant flooding outside the stadium during the World Cup qualifier prompted the Irish Football Association (IFA) to issue an apology to fans on Twitter late on Friday night.

Long delays were reported by the Green and White Army as they were leaving the west stand access route towards Boucher. Fans, including the elderly, wheelchair users and children, were forced to use temporary fencing lying on the ground to work their way through huge puddles of dirty water which was ankle deep in places.

Unhappy fans took to social media to express their outrage.

Keith Anderson posted: "Getting out of the National Stadium tonight was an absolute joke."

Another fan described watching wheelchair users struggling to get through the water as "horrendous".

The area of the Boucher Road affected by the heavy downpours is owned by Belfast City Council.

It is close to where work on a storm drain for the redeveloped stadium and the Olympia Leisure Centre has been happening.

A tweet sent from the IFA's Twitter account read: "Huge apologies to anyone who had difficulty getting in and out of the ground tonight. We are working with the relevant bodies to sort asap."

A council spokesperson confirmed the local authority was investigating the matter.